________________
Facets of Non-violence
Dr B.R. Dugar
Pacifists believe that the most effective, the most equitable, the most economical way of meeting violence is to use non-violence. This belief is based upon individual experience and study of history, past and contemporary.
The search for alternative to war has led to many proposals, ranging from William James'“moral equivalent to war” to world law. Most far-reaching of these is that which would substitute non-violent, civilian resistance for conventional military defense. Commander Stephen King Hall—a non-pacifists seen non-violence as the only feasible response to military threat in a nuclear age. True meaning of non-violence:
Non-violence means making the enormous effort required to overcome evil with good. Non-violence does not rely on strong muscles and devilish armaments; it relies on moral courage, that there is in every human being, however brutal, however personally hostile, a fund of kindness, a love of justice, a respect for goodness and truth which can be reduced by anyone who uses the right means. To use these means is often extraordinarily hard; but history shows that it can be done—and done not only by exceptional individuals, but also by large groups of ordinary men and women and even by governments.
Gene Sharp (1973), one of the major contemporary theorists of non-violence, has said that non-violence involves a kind of "Moral Jiu-Jutsu”. This characterization encapsulates the particular nature of non-violent action. Non-violence is not passive. Though it can involve persuasion, it is not merely this. Nor is it a form of coercion like that
36
ic 140
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
